The Lynx Edinburgh Weekender. Did we master the perfect urban getaway?

You will remember that last month I told you that I was working on an exciting new project with Lynx as well as a couple of other men’s lifestyle publications.  We were challenged with perfecting the ultimate weekend away that covered just about all the bases taking in adventure, food, culture and sightseeing.

The destination for the trip was Edinburgh (handy for me) and along with the editors from Menswear Style and Ape to Gentleman we came together to draw up an itinerary for the weekend that would hopefully offer a little something for everyone.

Edinburgh is actually a pretty decent shout for a weekend away.  It’s fairly easy to get to from most corners of the UK with good air and train links and being a Scottish city has plenty of outdoor and adventure activities on offer on the outskirts as well as the usual mix of museums, galleries, shops and points of the interest in the centre.

Edinburgh is not very big, in fact you can do a loop of the city centre in no more than 3o minutes but they do jam a lot into a small space, especially the old town which is where you find the castle and the main ‘tourist’ haunts.  On this trip we would be avoiding those in favour of things more likely to get our heart rates going so for the first activity we headed to the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena for some indoor climbing and abseiling.

This was the first time since school I had tried either and will openly admit that I’m not the most keen when it comes to heights or the prospect of falling, however giving it a go and facing the fear was truly rewarding.  The climbing centre in Edinburgh too is also well worth a visit just to see the scale of the place, it is huge! The worlds largest we were told.

After all that exertion we rewarded ourselves by heading to the Whiski Rooms for a tasting session involving some malt Scotch whisky, which had been paired expertly with a selection of local chocolates.  We then made our way to dinner at the cannonball restaurant at the very top of the Royal Mile.

With the evening still young at the conclusion of a delicious meal we decided to take in some bars in the ‘new town’ starting things off at Panda & Sons, a hidden basement bar accessed through a mock shop frontage.  We arrived around 10pm and the place was packed but the music was good and so was the vibe so we hung around to sample the drinks menu before bed.

The following morning it was an early start for our final and perhaps most enjoyable activity of the weekend, clay pigeon shooting at the Don Coyote Outdoor Centre.  This would be my first time shooting and it showed as I missed the first 8 shots I think! But eventually I got the swing of things and began to hit the target. The key I found was to avoid over thinking (easier said than done) and just go for it!

And that pretty much summed up the extent of the weekend trip! If you have been to Edinburgh and took part in an activity that you think is worthy of recommending, then let us know with the hashtag below.

#findyourmagic
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